NATO assessment hoped to spur extensive debate
“The assessment of the effects of Finland's possible NATO membership provides an excellent basis for further debate which will certainly be extensive. I hope that the foreign and security policy will be widely debated – and from various perspectives,” said Foreign Minister Timo Soini, when the NATO assessment was submitted to him on Friday 29 April. The report was compiled by an independent group of assessors.
It was agreed in the Government Programme that the Government prepare a Report on Finnish Foreign and Security Policy and, in connection with its preparation, assess the effects of Finland's possible NATO membership.
The task of preparing the NATO assessment was assigned to an independent group of assessors. The members of the group were Ambassador Mats Bergquist (Sweden); François Heisbourg, Chairman of the International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS) and the Geneva Centre for Security Policy (GCSP) (France); Ambassador René Nyberg (Finland); and Teija Tiilikainen, Director of the Finnish Institute of International Affairs (Finland).
When receiving the assessment report, Foreign Minister Soini pointed out that the Ministry for Foreign Affairs did not give any political guidance for preparing the report in terms of either its content or conclusions. The report is based on the independent assessment of the four experts involved.
“In the report, the experts have comprehensively addressed all the effects a potential NATO membership would have for Finland. In addition, it provides background information on how the current security policy order has evolved in the long run,” Soini said.
Finland’s international status needs to be taken into account in the debate
Foreign Minister Soini is of the opinion that, when discussing the content of the NATO assessment, certain facts need to be taken into account. He noted that Finland selected its side when the country decided to join the EU, and, for Finns, the EU also represents a security community.
Furthermore, Finland has been a NATO partner country for 20 years. Finland and NATO have some shared security environment in the Baltic Sea area in particular.
“NATO’s role is not only a military one, but it also plays a significant political role in all affairs related to European security,” Soini remarked.
The security situation in Europe has also changed since the events in Crimea and Ukraine.
Meritorious analysis to serve as a basis for public debate
The NATO assessment highlights the earlier NATO enlargement processes and Russian reactions to them. Soini, however, considered anticipation of possible Russian reactions to Finland's potential NATO membership speculation from the Finnish point of view.
The report charts potential divergent and convergent views and actions regarding NATO membership in a significant manner. Soini estimated that, as a result, the Finnish and Swedish NATO debates will now begin to bloom.
The NATO assessment is available for the Government, when the Report on Finnish Foreign and Security Policy is being finalised. The report will be submitted to Parliament during the spring term. It will also include estimates on Finland's NATO cooperation.